A recently published study in eLife details a potential breakthrough in the treatment of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), a condition that affects a staggering 25% of the global population.
NAFLD is often asymptomatic in its early stages, yet can lead to severe health problems, including type 2 diabetes, heart disease, chronic kidney disease, non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH), cirrhosis, and even liver cancer.
Study Insights and Findings
Role of Adgrf1: Scientists, led by Mengyao Wu of Guangzhou University, turned their attention to a molecule known as the adhesion G-protein coupled receptor (Adgrf1).
This molecule, predominantly found in the liver, is part of the G-protein coupled receptor (GPCR) family.
While several GPCRs have been connected to NAFLD, Adgrf1’s exclusive presence in the liver makes it a promising target without potential side effects on other organs.
Effects of Diet on Adgrf1: When mice were fed a high-fat diet, Adgrf1 levels dramatically dropped in their liver cells, positioning this molecule as a possible marker for NAFLD.
Impact of Adgrf1 on Metabolism: Overexpressing Adgrf1 in lean subjects didn’t show significant changes in weight or glucose and insulin levels.
However, when Adgrf1 levels didn’t decrease post a high-fat diet, mice exhibited symptoms akin to diabetes, including insulin resistance.
Gene Therapy and Adgrf1: Researchers used gene therapy to suppress Adgrf1 in obese mice. This suppression improved glucose levels and insulin sensitivity, reduced lipid accumulation in liver cells, and lowered levels of liver enzymes known to indicate liver damage.
Mechanism Behind Adgrf1’s Effect: The research team found that changes in the enzyme stearoyl coA desaturase 1 (Scd1), a fat-promoting enzyme, are connected to Adgrf1. This discovery suggests that Adgrf1 has a role in fat synthesis.
Human Relevance: Using public gene expression data from human liver biopsy samples, researchers found that obese individuals without NAFLD had lower Adgrf1 levels than their lean counterparts.
Interestingly, those with NAFLD had Adgrf1 levels similar to lean individuals without the disease. Increased Adgrf1 levels in NAFLD patients might be due to liver inflammation.
Moreover, patients with severe fatty liver disease had higher Adgrf1 levels compared to those with milder NAFLD.
Implications and Future Directions
The results of this comprehensive study indicate that suppressing Adgrf1 might serve as a protective mechanism against fat overaccumulation in the livers of obese individuals.
Senior author, Associate Professor Chi-Ming Wong, states, “The findings of our study pave the way for further research into the safety and efficacy of targeting Adgrf1 for the treatment of people with fatty liver disease.”
If these initial findings are confirmed in future studies, this could revolutionize the therapeutic approach for those with fatty liver disease.
If you care about liver health, please read studies about a diet that can treat fatty liver disease and obesity, and coffee drinkers may halve their risk of liver cancer.
For more information about liver health, please see recent studies that anti-inflammatory diet could help prevent fatty liver disease, and results showing vitamin D could help prevent non-alcoholic fatty liver disease.
The study was published in eLife.
Follow us on Twitter for more articles about this topic.
Copyright © 2023 Knowridge Science Report. All rights reserved.
